Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Saturday pitched a female candidate for the first time to contest elections from Dir - a socially conservative district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province where women were not even allowed to cast their votes in 2015 local government election.
Hamida Shahid, a PTI politician will jump into the fray for the first time in history of the district against her all male rivals in forthcoming general election to be held on July 25 despite resistance by local people who barred their women to cast their votes in 2015 local government election.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had to hold re-elections in areas where woman were barred to cast their votes, after it was reported that four major political parties had backed a Fatwa (decree) issued by a local mosque to prevent women from taking part in the election.
Leaders from Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, Pakistan Peoples Party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) were reported to have been present at a meeting in the local mosque when the parties had jointly agreed to block women from participating in the polls.
The PTI has also allotted ticket to Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan who will contest elections from Sialkot, an all important constituency from where PML-N is enjoying popular support.
A former PTI MNA Shaharyar Afridi was also given ticket to contest elections from Kohat, while Shaukat Yousafzai, a former MPA who had won elections from Peshawar in 2013 elections, was given ticket to contest elections from his hometown Besham, a remote village of district Shangla where he is reportedly facing prospects of winning the polls.
However Ali Muhammad Khan, a former PTI MNA from Mardan known for pan-Islamic views, has not yet been awarded ticket.
The sources told that he held a meeting with party chairman Imran Khan on Friday evening, but it is yet to be decided whether or not he will be given party ticket.
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